This is the blog of China defense, where professional analysts and serious defense enthusiasts share findings on a rising military power.

Wednesday, October 19, 2011

Chinese army to send medical team to Pakistan for humanitarian relief

Chinese army to send medical team to Pakistan for humanitarian relief

(Source: Xinhua) 2011-10-20

BEIJING, Oct. 19 (Xinhua) -- The Chinese armed forces will send a 50-member medical team to assist with humanitarian relief work in flood-hit Pakistan, according to a written statement released by the Chinese Defense Ministry on Wednesday.

The medical team of the Chinese People's Liberation Army (PLA) is scheduled to set out on Oct. 20, and the team will work in Pakistan for about 10 days, the statement said.

The team will head to the country's most devastated areas to assist Pakistan's armed forces by providing medical rescue services for victims and conducting disease prevention work, it said.

Pakistani officials said that nearly 7 million people have been affected by floods triggered by heavy monsoon rains in southern parts of the country in August and September. Crops on millions of acres of land have been washed away.

The Chinese government had previously donated emergency humanitarian aid worth 30 million yuan (about 4.7 million U.S. dollars) to the Pakistani government in September.

The assistance, which largely consisted of 7000 tents and a total of nine aircraft sorties, was delivered in two batches.

In a meeting with Pakistani Foreign Minister Hina Rabbani Khar earlier this month, Chinese Ambassador to Pakistan Liu Jian said that the Chinese government will also provide 5 million U.S. dollars in cash to the flood-hit country.

China was one of the first countries to announce and carry out relief aid to Pakistan after the flooding.

During last year's flooding, which was the worst flooding in Pakistan's history, China provided a total of 120 million yuan worth of humanitarian supplies to Pakistan and sent a Chinese rescue team to provide medical services to flood victims.

The PLA also sent emergency equipment to Pakistan's armed forces to aid in the country's flood relief work last year.